Rating: 
Summary: Form meets content: excellent result
Review: Like others, I bought Fitzgerald's book based on readers' comments, and I'm glad I did. What is striking is not only how well the historical and literary forms are woven together, but the structure of the novel. Stylistically, content becomes form here. It has the feel, prose of a novel of its times, and captures the fanciful flights of imagination and bourgeois thinking of the times. The attention to detail domestically, the preoccupations with money, chores, class separations are all key ingredients of the novel. Metaphysics and ideas aside, the book holds its own quite well. Marvelously entertaining, I found it.
Rating: 
Summary: disappointly shallow
Review: I had just finished rereading Thomas Mann's BUDDENBROOKS, in which he uses German titles and place names but without the confusion I found in THE BLUE FLOWER where I had to go back to find out who a character was or where a place fit into the novel. The book had no real plot, one dimensional characters and what is most important no real sense of who Novalis was as a poet or why he was admired in his time. There was no real description of Sophie, except that her hair was neither brunette nor blonde, and her stupidity was apparent from her journal entries and the few letters she wrote. There were some nice turn of phrases and descriptions but that did not compensate for the lack of interest I had in the novel.
Rating: 
Summary: A wonderful, deeply felt historical novel.
Review: This is one of the best new novels which I have read in a very long time. It recreates a very interesting milieu , which in itself is a source of its quality. But, beyond that , it examines a peculiar, seemingly obsessive relationship between the young poet and the child whom he wishes to marry with such sensitivity that it seems perfectly plausible and understandable. Yet all this is done without any heavy handed explanation by the author. She leaves her characters alone, and you get to understand them through their words and deeds. Her writing is spare, yet remarkably effective in conveying the deep feeling which is such a part of this novel, particularly in its last pages. I think that the best novels tells us about what it means to be human, and in doing so transcend their settings and their stories. This is such a novel.
Rating:
Summary: Engaging characters kept my attention. Lovely prose.
Review: The writing is extraordinary. Books allow me to experience different perspectives and widen my horizons. As I entered the world of "The Blue Flower" I recaptured that joy of reading (the last few books I read weren't very good). The characters were not predictable and I cared about them. During the day, at work, I pondered what would happen next. That is how I know I love a book. It engaged me when I least expected it (when I wasn't reading) and I was sad when the final page was turned. I recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: A big dissapointment!
Review: I purchased this book with eagar anticipation after reading several highly favorable reviews. I was so dissappointed with the story that I could not even finish it.The historical content was boring. The characters were insipid and two dimensional-even Lolita,a book which is highly overrated , had more depth to it. The writing style was satisfactory but not outstanding. I haven't read her other books and have no intention to. There so many other superb works out there to read so don't waste your time on this one
Rating:
Summary: James Michener it ain't--and that's good!
Review: Most "historical" novels are HEAVY, both literally and metaphorically--not only do they weigh too much to hold comfortably, but also they are laden with detailed information about life in the time depicted: clothes, furnishings, hairstyles, commonly accepted ideas. "The Blue Flower" floats above all that: at a brief 225 pages, it's barely a prologue for a Michener tome. But, more to the point, it wears its history lightly. Yes, it gives us information about "daily life," including [remarkably] how often a "typical upper class" family washed clothes in Germany in the 1790's and, therefore, how many clothes they had to have in order to wear clean garments every day. But this information is not delivered as an "historical" layer outside the plot: it arises within the plot and generally functions to reveal more about the characters as well as the times. Fitzgerald's characters are vibrant: thinking, doing, loving. Her characters are funny, brilliant, pious, odd. You will race through "The Blue Flower" not because it is a "thriller" in any normal sense, but simply because its characters and the grace of Fitzgerald's writing draw you in and hold you. "The Blue Flower" is worthy to stand with Yourcenar's "Memoirs of Hadrian" and Malouf's "An Imaginary Life" as exemplary visions of the inner lives of historical people
Rating: 
Summary: I hate to be a nay-sayer, but...
Review: On the strength of the most positive NYTimes Book Review I've seen in recent years, I bought and read "The Blue Flower." It strikes me as the sort of book that only the British can write and only the critics (and other authors) can really love. The book is unquestionably finely written, and Penelope Fitzgerald is unquestionably a writer of extraordinary talent. I found it impossible, however, to become actively engaged as a reader when the main character is an early nineteenth century romantic poet in love with a 14-year-old girl with whom he has absolutely nothing in common. The girl's lack of intelligence, lack of experience, lack of education, and lack of any strong traits of character make her so unlikely a love object that I found I could not sympathize with Fritz, much less identify with his woes
Rating:
Summary: Very Odd, but I Did Like It
Review: I found "The Blue Flower" to be an odd little book both in style and in content. Set in eighteenth century Germany, "The Blue Flower" tells the true story of university student, Friedrich von Hardenberg, (the man who was later to become known as the poet, Novalis), and his love for a simple-minded young girl of twelve, Sophie von Kuehn. I have to admit that were this story not true, the plot would have been preposterous. Somehow, Fitzgerald made me believe in this improbable love and in the families involved. This was quite a feat, I think, especially given the fact that Fitzgerald never allows us to become too emotionally involved with the characters but keeps us rather distanced instead."The Blue Flower" isn't a conventional novel with a straightforward narrative. Instead, it's episodic and told in fifty-five very short chapters (quite a few for a book of just about 200 pages). If you think this makes the book seem choppy, let me asssure you, it doesn't. Fitzgerald's writing, and the story of Fritz and Sophie is as smooth as silk. This episodic quality, however, is what causes us to feel somewhat distanced from the characters. If you're a reader who needs or wants a lot of involvement in a story, you might be disappointed with "The Blue Flower." Even though "The Blue Flower" makes use of some rather unusual stylistic techniques, Fitzgerald doesn't seem to have been employing them simply for the sake of either art or experimentation. Given the subject matter, I think she made perfect choices throughout. "The Blue Flower" is a book set in the Germany of Goethe and it's peppered with German words and phrases. Luckily, German is a language in which I'm fluent so I didn't find the inclusion of so much of it off-putting in the least. I do think that readers who are unfamiliar with either German or the German speaking world might have a little problem, though. For example, I think there are some who could read the entire book and, at its conclusion, still be wondering what a "Freiherr" was. Fitzgerald offers us no explanations and, on the whole, I thik her choice was a perfect one, but the reader needs to be warned. "The Blue Flower" is also peppered with humor and wit. I found this surprising and I'm in awe of Fitzgerald's abilities. On the surface, one would expect this to be a rather dull, dry story or one given to excessive melodrama. It's neither. Both its humor and its pathos are perfectly tuned. To repeat, "The Blue Flower" is a book based on highly improbable, yet true, facts. It's episodic in style and never permits the reader full engagement with the characters. If any of these elements cause you to to dislike a book, then you'd be better off choosing one of Fitzgerald's other offerings. Be assured though, this isn't a case of "style over substance." The substance is definitely there; it's just presented in a rather innovative manner. Penelope Fitzgerald was a writer whose books are truly "little gems." I know readers who feel she let us down with "The Blue Flower" but she didn't. It's different, but it's still wonderful. The fact that some readers may not care for this difference does nothing to detract from the book itself. If you read it with an open mind and accept it for what it is, I think you'll love it and be enriched by it as much as I was.
Rating:
Summary: This is a souffle, not Hamburger Helper.
Review: The reviewer who wrote you either love this book or hate it is right. Those who hate it seem to do so because it did not live up to their preconceived notions of what "a great book" should be. Obvious plot development, blatant character growth, a quick rundown of history ... if those are the only reasons you read, definitely don't get this book. I thought it was a light, wonderful collection of vignettes that brought the world of late 18th century Germany to life. *But* I wasn't reading to see how Sophie would develop into a girl worthy of a great poet's love. At the risk of sounding like a snobby "real" reviewer, let me recommend the kind of readers who will like this book: (in the words of the late Iris Murdoch, another British novelist) "someone who likes a jolly good yarn and enjoys thinking about the book as well, about the moral issues." The key is putting in a little mental effort of your own.
Rating: 
Summary: Terrible
Review: I found this to be a disapointing book It's been lauded as bringing an earlier German period to life, but I don't find it more convincing than other novelists. The writing is terse, leaving too much to the imagination, and there is not enough details about the characters to care much about them. It portrays the early life of genius student Fritz von Hardenberg, before becoming the famous Romatic poet Novalis.
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